Halt, The Runaway Prince
by NymphadoraTonks11
Summary: Prince Halt O'Carrick is the heir to the throne of Clonmel. The catch? He doesn't want it. But his twin brother does, and is prepared to kill to get it. Watch as Halt goes from being a fed-up, runaway prince to the legendary, ass-kicking Ranger we all know and love. But he has to survive apprenticeship first!
1. A suspicious plate of shrimp

**Hya! So for those of you who aren't aware, this is actually a re-write of the original, which was also a revised version. Anybody who read the atrocious original, please try to avoid keeling over in shock. :)**  
**Me: I didn't miss doing these things. Like, at all.**  
**Ray: Move it, Hannah. Just do it!**  
**Me: NOOOOOOOOO-**  
**Ray: *pushes me over***  
**Me: *grumbling* Fine, NYMPHADORATONKS11 DOESN'T OWN THE RANGER'S APPRENTICE SERIES. That all goes to John Flanagan.**

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The plate of shrimp was laid on the table, in front of me. My nose wrinkled, staring grumpily at the offending seafood. Beside me, Ferris dug in, obviously delighted. Our parents beamed, pleased that their precious baby boy was enjoying his food.  
And no, their 'precious baby boy' wasn't me, even though I'm their heir and firstborn. It's Ferris, the manipulative liar that takes every opportunity to needle and antagonise me. And- when he's feeling particularly spiteful- Caitlyn.

Speaking of Caitlyn, the dark haired princess was staring stonily down at the table, hands folded together in her lap. It wouldn't be long before Rhianna and Fabian O'Carrick started arguing again, inevitably turning to Caitlyn as though she was a treasure that was instrumental in winning the argument. After appealing to their daughter, they would start yelling about how she skipped classes and ran wild throughout the castle, before coming to rest on Halt. He's too grim, too dark, too antisocial, they would say. Then King Fabian and Queen Rhianna would gush over Ferris, exclaiming how talented, how polite, how charming he is. Then the cloud's on their faces would recede, too busy beaming over their son to remember that they were arguing and alienating both each other, themselves, and their other children.

Sometimes, I thought darkly, Caitlyn and himself could be dead for all they know. Rhianna and Fabian had never gotten along, but after their children came along, tensions came to an all-time high as they needed constant attention, a task instantly delegated to nursemaids and servants. Ferris, Halt's younger twin, was the only thing keeping them together most days.

I took a reluctant bite of the shrimp. Queen Rhianna was already looking at me sternly, no need to make her get a servant in to deliver a long spiel about eating, socialising, and spending less time in the woods. Yeah, Rhianna really did that.

Half-way through the long, silent meal, nausea started rolling uncomfortably throughout my stomach. A dull ache settled around my temples and forehead, pulsing sharply. I abruptly stood, knocking my chair aside as I raced for the hallway. Falling to my knees as I began to retch, emptying the contents of my stomach. Bile rose throughout my throat and I fought to keep it all down. Behind me, Caitlyn let out a small shriek as she realised what was happening, immediately yelling for a physician.

King Fabian, Queen Rhianna, and Ferris all remained seated, identical expressions of confusion wrinkling their brow until Caitlyn's yells brought them to the realisation that I was vomiting on the floor. The reactions seemed genuine enough, sadly, but Ferris had about him the slightly shifty air that surrounded him when he was plotting.

Caitlyn bolted to my side, rubbing my back soothingly as I finally leaned back, eyes closing. Sweat beaded in a line across my brow, cheeks turning a fevered red.

"Caitlyn, I don't feel so good," I moaned uncomfortably as my stomach cramped painfully.

The physician rushed in as the king and queen leapt to their feet, Rhianna elegantly gasping, hiding her face with a handkerchief, while Fabian gruffly ordered the physician to sedate him until they knew what it was.

A slimy paste was forced down his battered throat, and I passed out.

* * *

When I awoke, my head ached and my throat was dry and scratchy like sandpaper. Caitlyn was perched in a chair beside me, faithfully watching over her brother,. She visibly perked up when she noticed that I was awake.

"It's nice to see you awake, brother. Ferris has been insufferable with his concern that you were deathly ill." Here, Caitlyn rolled her eyes, signifying to me that she didn't believe Ferris for one second.

I blinked blearily upwards at her.

"How long have I been out?" I rasped, croaking slightly.

Caitlyn handed him a goblet of water. "Slow, small sips," she advised, then settled back in her seat, waiting warily for my reaction.

"Not long. A couple of hours. The sedative took longer to wear off, so almost the entire night. Then, of course, father insisted that their was nothing wrong with you, and told Nigel to feed you and send you on your way," Caitlyn's mocking tone and overdramatic posture made it clear exactly what she thought of that particular course of action. "Of course, you vomited it all up, so Nigel- the new physician, by the way- panicked and sedated you again, because mother demanded that he did. So then of course, your were out another day."

Caitlyn seemed quite pleased with her ample explanation, contently but warily watching me for a reaction.

"All day and all night?" I repeated.

"Mm, hm." Caitlyn confirmed.

My mind drew a temporary blank.

"Oh," I said simply.

Caitlyn raised an eyebrow, deciding to chance her luck by giving me a cheeky grin.

"Sounds like you're struck speechless, Halt. Maybe you're losing your touch!"

I merely glared.

"I'm just glad it was only food poisoning," I commented.

Caitlyn's eyes darkened for a moment, just a second, like she had a niggling suspicion about her elder brother's rather sudden case of food poisoning, but kept quiet.

* * *

**Bya! ****It'll pick up more, I swear.**

**-Tonks**


	2. Tensions unfold

**Chapter two! Huzzah, I live! **

**But oh man, deleting all the original chapters wasn't a wise idea. All the replies to reviews were lost, along with the emails in my inbox. Damn.**

**Uh, sorry guys? **

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**Disclaimer:**

**Me: *blinking* Oh that's funny, I almost thought I owned RA series for a moment.**

**Haly: *dropping from the ceiling and drop kicking a fart filled pumpkin at me***

**Me: Oh, crud. *backs away* I DON'T OWN IT! ANY OF IT! JUST PLEASE, HALY, DON'T DO THIS TO ME!**

**Haly: Too late...**

**Me: O.O **

**Sorry guys, I'll update once I recover from this poisonous gas/fart pumpkin attack. I'LL CLAIM IT WAS POISONOUS GAS. I HAVE A COVER STORY AND I'M STICKING TO IT.**

* * *

After my extended stay in bed, Caitlyn became my shadow. A rather noisy shadow, but a shadow nonetheless.

I ditched her, however, for my meeting with Pritchard. He was an exiled King's Ranger from Araluen, hiding in Clonmel. Why Clonmel? You may ask.

Let me just say, Hibernia is an excellent kingdom if you want to disappear, you've been exiled, or you're hiding something. Especially in someplace like Dun Kilty, Clonmel, where the royals are lazy and extremely liable to turn a blind eye.

"When did you get sick?" Pritchard asked upon my entrance of the clearing.

"Food poisoning. Three days ago," I answered, briefly touching upon the details. Pritchard liked answers like that- short and to the point, although being exile may have helped that along.

Pritchard glanced sideways at me. "Can you still shoot a bow?"

"Maybe," I replied, eyes narrowing. What was Pritchard planning?

Pritchard grinned.

"Excellent, my apprentice. Today, you'll be shooting the two hundred mark!"

My jaw dropped slightly as I gawped. I could only_ just_ hit the one hundred, and now I was going for a _two hundred_ metre range?

Pritchard seemed sufficiently satisfied with my reaction. Nodding sagely, he chanted;

"An archer practises until he gets it right. A Ranger practises until he never gets it wrong."

I joined in, dully droning the repetitive saying. Hearing it day in and day out never failed to send me to sleep at night.

Pritchard smiled at me, but it didn't quite reach his eyes, which gleamed with mischief.

"Let's see if you're still capable of speech once I'm finished with you."

Damn.

* * *

I quietly crept through the castle, having safely stashed my bow in a tree. My muscles ached. Combined with the last tendrils of nausea coiled in my stomach, training probably wasn't such a good idea.

My footsteps padded lightly against the cobblestone as I manoeuvred around the guards, silently scurrying to my room. I was unnoticed as I crept by, just like every time before it.

But as I entered my room, something new happened. Caitlyn O'Carrick was silently fuming on my bed, waiting for me to return.

"Were you with Pritchard again, Halt?" she asked quietly.

I silently weighed up my options. Lie to Caitlyn and hide until she calmed down, or tell the truth and face her wrath.

Sadly, Caitlyn already knew where I'd been. It wasn't a question, it was a statement. Which meant that I was in deep, deep, trouble.

"Sorry Caity," I mumbled, searching for an escape option.

Caitlyn's temper flared. "Don't you 'Caity' me, I've been looking for you!" she shouted. "Do you have any idea how worried I've been? Ferris was following me the entire time, and you were missing!"

"I'm sorry, Caitlyn. I shouldn't of duped you." I apologised meekly.

Caitlyn stood, and it seemed to me that her hair was frizzy with anger.

"No, you shouldn't have. You are extremely lucky, Halt O'Carrick, that I have lessons. This isn't over," she warned, and brushed past me as she exited.

My legs wobbled with relief, and I gratefully sunk into a chair.

_Never _upset Caitlyn. _Ever._

* * *

Ferris cursed angrily, tearing through the library. He'd messed up the portions, and the Monkshood poison had failed it's job.

Even worse, Caitlyn was onto him. It wasn't like his little sister could do anything but suspect him in silence, but if Caitlyn was suspicious, then it wouldn't be long before Halt was suspicious too. And then they might tell Pritchard, the delusional ex-Ranger that lived in the woods. He was delusional, yes, and a fool, but Ferris had little doubt that his siblings would do anything they could to get rid of Ferris, including asking a man to put an arrow in his chest.

Halt wasn't fit to be king. He stole the throne from Ferris, _he _deserved it, not Halt. And Caitlyn was a disgrace to royalty too, always running around the castle, speaking to the servants, and skipping her lessons. The lot of them were disgraces.

Ferris would be a great king. He would kill Halt, and force Caitlyn to act like a proper lady, then he'd marry her off to a rich noble. It would be what was best for them all. Halt would be better off dead, that was just the way things were. And Caitlyn would thank him eventually, grateful that he rescued her from her shameful behaviour.

They would see. They would _all _see. All he had to do was kill Halt.

And maybe roof tiles would be enough to do it...

* * *

**Yeah, kinda short, but whatever. **

**I liked the idea that Caitlyn knew what was going on in the castle, but couldn't say anything because she was a woman and a princess. I tried to communicate that last time, but it blew up in my face.**

**Thank you for reading!**

**-Tonks**


	3. Terracotta isn't good for anyone

***stares in complete and utter confusion at computer*** **Is this seriously what I think it is? ****_A_** **_review__ from _**_GracefulLeopard?!_

**GRACEFULLEOPARD, I AM TALKING TO YOU. Do you- and answer me honestly- have some sort of psychic ability that allows you to sense when I am working on this story? Because seriously, I literally posted this a couple of days ago. How on earth did you get to this so quickly? Because I could have sworn you weren't following...**

**Nevermind, glad to have you back on board. Yes, Ferris is a jerk and possibly insane. Glad you like Caitlyn, I thought that with Halt being Halt, and Ferris being the aforementioned, ****_someone _****had to of received the sensible genes. And thank you for the cookie! I will never say no to a bribe. :) Oh! And how are you liking my improved writing skills/the new version of this story? I swear, I almost died when I read the old version!**

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_**I wrote the first half of this weeks/months ago. I know what you're thinking, anyone-who-read-the-original-and-knows-I-update-once-every-week-or-two. What could have possibly kept me away from my beloved laptop for so long?**_

**An explanation is available on my profile, if you're interested.**

* * *

**Disclaimer:**

**Me: *stares in utter wonder as fireworks explode in the sky, writing-* NYMPHADORATONKS11 IS NOT JOHN FLANAGAN.**

**Ray: *unimpressed* That was a really crappy job you did with the fireworks, there.**

**Me: Well sorry, Ray, but I'm a thirteen year-old with piggy bank money. **

**Ray: THAT IS NO EXCUSE FOR YOU TO BE AWFUL WITH IMAGINATION MESSAGE-FIREWORKS.**

**Me: *crying* I'M SORRY, RAYNA. THEY RAN OUT OF THE GOOD ONES.**

**Ray: *patting my head* Alright, just write this stupid chapter. **

**Me: *sniffling* Really? Cool!**

* * *

**And also, if this damn computer converts my writing to code again, I swear that I won't be responsible for the consequences. My laptop might find itself conveniently being run over by a truck. Repeatedly. In the middle of a highway. A busy one. With lots of trucks.**

**And as for the third person P.O.V, that was an accident. I'm feeling too lazy to correct it right now, but hopefully I'll get around to editing it back to first person soon enough. **

* * *

It was an unusually hot day in Dun Kilty. Everyone was moving sluggishly in the afternoon heat, sweat beading across their brow and staining their tunics.

The royal prince of Clonmel was not immune to the heat, either. Having earlier refused the servant's offers of iced water and fans, Halt was left to boil alone in the heat. Caitlyn was being held up in her lessons, learning to walk with a heavy book upon her head- a fact which provided no end of amusement for her brother.

Unfortunately, this meant that Halt had to find a way to entertain himself. And as we all know, Halt O'Carrick simply does not do entertainment. Instead, he chose to go for a walk to retrieve his bow and go for an impromptu meeting with Pritchard. In Halt's haste to leave the humid castle, he forgot to alert anyone of his absence.

And thus, that was how Halt found himself in passing through the courtyard, carefully keeping an eye on the nearby builders who were attempting to construct a makeshift platform, as King Fabian was due to make a public announcement in three days. This was how Halt failed to notice- even with is budding Ranger skills- the dark silhouette perched above him, kicking down an assortment of terracotta tiles that shattered against the flagstones, showering Halt in a range of sharp and serrated debris.

Halt went down under the shrapnel, more out of shock than anything else. Pritchard would be disgusted later- if Halt made it to him. His legs were a smeared mass of blood and terracotta shards, blood streaming down onto the cobblestone. Cuts lined his arms and torso as well, and Halt blanched as he surveyed the damage through a haze of pain.

"Help!" he croaked out. He cleared his throat and repeated the cry.

The builders were already at his side, yelling for the physician and the guards. Hands tethered Halt to reality, lifting his body, clearing away the shrapnel, and attempting to clear out the wounds.

Halt found that he didn't care, suddenly. Because on the rooftop was the shrouded form of Ferris. And he wasn't concerned at all that his brother was injured- rather, he was scowling and appeared furiously angry that Halt survived the accident.

But what if...

Halt abruptly rolled over on his side and dry heaved as realisation dawned. _That _was what Caitlyn had been trying to tell him. She must have known all along that Ferris was trying to kill him, but couldn't say anything lest she be silenced, or taken away. And the castle was everything to Caitlyn- she'd be absolutely crushed if she was taken away from Dun Kilty.

But Ferris...Halt almost didn't believe it. His brother, trying to kill him! But _why? _Surely Ferris wasn't that desperate to get the throne that-

But he was. And Halt was bleeding on the ground while Ferris snuck away, escaping blame. It filled Halt with rage, that Ferris was so selfish and conceited that he'd actually attempt to kill his brother and delude his sister.

Then he passed out.

* * *

Caitlyn knew, the second she saw Halt step outside, that Ferris would try again.

It was inevitable. Halt was alone, unguarded, and still slightly weak from the poison he'd eaten a week ago. And his crowning ceremony was coming up, where Halt would be confirmed as Crown Prince.

Ferris would try again. He had to, with so much to lose.

Caitlyn buried her face in her arms, perched by the window in her favourite seat, in the most secluded area of the library. She tried to warn Halt, honestly...Caitlyn loved her brother, and never wanted any harm to come to him. But Ferris...

Ferris had threatened to send her away if she told anyone what she knew. To Gallica, where she'd be forced to work like a peasant, away from Dun Kilty and it's bustling markets, away from Halt, and away from her books. In Gallica, she'd be overlooked, forgotten, left to rot.

So Caitlyn quietly kept her mouth shut. No one would believe her, anyway. Halt would just ignore it, like he did to anything he didn't want to hear. He'd push it aside and try to work through it, but shut it down.

So Caitlyn buried her face out of shame, and waited for her brother to cry out. She didn't have long to wait- a loud crashing noise sounded outside, and she could faintly hear Halt's shout. Tears welled up in Caitlyn's eyes- Halt was tough, he'd be okay. But Ferris would try again.

Speaking of Ferris; Caitlyn peered out the window to try and locate her monster of a brother.

"Hello, sister," Ferris sneered.

Caitlyn whirled around, faced with the unpleasant sight of her youngest brother. She titled her chin up defiantly, eyes gleaming with anger.

"What did you do to Halt?" she demanded.

Ferris sneer soured further. "Don't worry, darling sister, he'll live. The roof tiles didn't kill him."

Caitlyn almost collapsed with relief. Halt was okay...

Caitlyn put her hands on her hips, adopting a bold pose. "And why are you here?" she challenged.

"Well you see, sister mine," Ferris began, shooting her a feral smile. "In a week, father will get very ill...and Halt and I will go fishing. A nice, lovely, bonding experience..."

Caitlyn's heart went cold with dread, as she listened to the mad delusions her brother had formed.

* * *

**Oooh, Halt's out of commission. Caitlyn is over her head. What'll happen next? And what is Ferris' plan?**

**Well, we already know about the salmon fishing incident. But now it has a twist... :)**

**R&amp;R,**

**-Tonks**


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